Pacquiao beating Hatton...I just don't see it

[Gandalf]

You can't compare Pacquiao's speed to that of Maligfaggi...

Statement: Ricky Hatton was asked repeatedly how he could expect to cope with Pacquiao’s now-legendary speed and each time he had the same answer: “They said the same thing about Paulie Malignaggi, how he was too quick for me and how he was going to outbox me. And look what happened in that fight.”

Where he went wrong: Many experts did favor Malignaggi in their November fight, in which Hatton won by 11th-round TKO. Hatton’s mistake is equating Malignaggi in any way to Pacquiao. Malignaggi is a fairly quick-handed, capable fighter. However, one thing opponents often say after fighting Pacquiao for the first time is they underestimated his amazing hand speed, not to mention his foot speed. And Pacquaio’s not just a capable fighter; he’s a great fighter, perhaps one of the best ever. Like so many before him, Hatton might be very surprised on May 2.

You are right in that Malignaggi is just one fighter and Manny is a different beast. One who can punch hard and fast, with both hands too. Pac has excellent hand speed and footwork. But let's not forget that it was only a year ago that Marquez was giving Manny all he could handle and that was at 130.

Pac has risen a lot in this past year and though the Oscar win was a surprise, it was abundantly clear that all was not well with Oscar. The Forbes fight also showed obvious signs of decay. Don't underestimate Ricky Hatton. He surprises people with his speed and power too. Looking at footage of him training, I am very impressed with how things are looking. It isn't about burning down for once, he is working on those skills, getting that head moving and the combinations flowing. Hatton's skills are underrated IMO, and that has been partly because he himself has sometimes forgotten to apply the method. The method is right back at the heart of things again now, and I like what I'm seeing. I'm optimistic.

I second that miles. however I see a similar problem for Hatton but more mental. Hatton lost some of his confidence with that loss to Floyd Jr. and he doubts the very skills that made him champion at 140 and gets Floyd Sr. to work on adding new skills. There is no trainer that can change Hatton into a different fighter. His new found boxing skills are in the same class as his inside boxing skills. We saw what they were working on in that fight against Malignaggi and we also saw the Ricky of old when he got his full confidence back walk right through Malignaggi. That may well have been his game plan but if it wasn't this fight ain't going the distance.

I really saw issues with confidence in the Lazcano fight. Hatton won pretty much every round, but there was something in his fighting that wasn't there. It was almost as though he was going throught the motions. I was a bit shocked that he decided to let Billy Graham go, but hindsight suggests that this was one of the most brilliant moves Hatton could make. He looked much better against Malignaggi and seemed to be brimming with confidence from the second round on. The same attitude seems to have carried on through into this camp and Hatton really seems revitalised. He seems to be relishing this opportunity and is making all the right moves.